After being stuck in the Senate for months, a multiyear aviation bill has new life in the chamber. With some planes grounded recently and the summer travel season around the corner, Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on April 28 moved a four-year Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization to the floor. Key construction provisions include an increase for Federal Aviation Administration airport construction grants and a “fix” for the projected 2009 deficit in the Highway Trust Fund’s highway account.
Clearing the way for the bill was an April 25 agreement between the Senate commerce and finance committees on raising the fuel tax for private jets. Todd Hauptli, American Association of Airport Executives’ senior executive vice president, says getting the bill to the Senate floor “greatly enhances the chance of a final [legislative] product being completed this year, avoiding having to start all over again from scratch next year.”